I defaulted to 100 pace today because I was tired from the weekend's sprint workouts and weights yesterday. I'm still somewhat ambivalent about my "comeback" ... it's frustrating to feel physically limited and I know it's going to take awhile to be swimming/racing fit again. But I nonetheless purchased a new tech suit today to use this spring as there are only old ones in my closet. Though I like Arenas, I wasn't moved to pay $550 for the newest model. So I opted for the new A3 VICI suit. And, unlike, Arenas, it comes in black!

Kept my workouts pretty short this week with my daughter home. Still I felt pretty sluggish today. Planning on heading back to BP tomorrow for another sprint practice. I did enter our Y Champs on April 7-8 at Spire. There is a masters meet here in Mt Lebanon next weekend. I might drop in and deck enter a couple events just out of sheer convenience.

Just getting in some short workouts with my daughter visiting for spring break. Will likely head to Pitt tonight. Not exactly sure what my next meet will be, but I am thinking of signing up for the Y Champs at the Spire Institute. Everyone says it's a fabulous pool.

Last time I checked in, my comeback training was proceeding fairly encouragingly all things considered. I've since been detoured with a nasty lingering virus that causes nausea and vertigo. I blame it squarely on Jim T who had it first. (As revenge, I refused to read his article on age graded rankings. ) With the exception of a couple 1000 easies, I was knocked out of the pool for 10 days. At the outset of the detour, I went to a local Y meet on Nov. 19 and remembered why I don't like Y meets. First, I was dead tired from the preceding Friday practice. Then, the pool temp was like 86 degrees, the hottest pool I've swum in in years. I brought two old Speedo tech suits circa 2010. I guess they don't age well in closets. One ripped right away when I put in on. The other sprung two holes. Into the garbage ... My first event was 25 back. The blocks were so low that I couldn't pull up high enough to do my usual archy start. Then, the timer failed to get my time. That's a first. Coach Bill video'd and timed it at 13.25, which I think was a tad generous. Next up, I slipped on the blocks for the 50 breast and fell in the water with my hands about a half a foot apart. I couldn't really be bothered to try much after that auspicious beginning, so was close to a personal worst. I seem to recall that I fell off these same blocks 4 years ago in the 100 breast at this meet. I just don't really want to use blocks where you can't push off with your back foot. I was feeling really nauseous at that point, so left. As a result of this detour, I scratched the SCM meet I had planned on swimming in on Dec 2. I wanted a 50 back time, but oh well. Just the idea of a long drive makes me nauseous. I am a bit cross about it, but will instead go see Handel's Messiah on Saturday night with friends.

I finally crawled back to Pitt last night and did a half hearted workout and left early.

Swim/SCY @ Pitt

Warm up:

400 various
8 x 50 of something or other
8 x 50 IM order swim-kick. I did these all back kick with fins, UW 15 m @ 1:00

16 x 25 @ :30, odds = fast kick
Huh ... hard pass. Just didn't get how this could actually be done on that interval and didn't want to do a 400 kick. Instead, I did 12 x 25 odds fast back kick (15 m UW) @ :40-:45 trying to stay out of the way of my lane mates who were barely making the interval. Went 15s on backstroke kick.
1:00 rest
1 x 50 fast kick @ 1:00
-- went :32 backstroke kick from a push. happy with that
1 x 50 EZ @ 2:00 (not enuf recovery for me ... legs full of lactic acid)

16 x 25 swim @ :30, odds = fast
Huh, well this time I put on fins to make the interval. Did the odds @ 100 pace, IM order. Tiring ... but times were good.
1:00 rest
1 x 50 fast sprint @ 1:00
-- I was too tired to do this without more recovery. Did a 25 fast fly (:10) & cruised a 25
1 x 50 EZ @ 23:00

Ouch, that workout, despite being mostly 25s, was deceptively hard. Despite skipping some bits, I did a ton of fast 25s kicking and swimming and 25s @ 100 pace along with the one all out 50. My legs feel like rocks today. I'm going to do an EZ swim at BP and beg Mr. Fort for a massage. I may take an epsom salt bath as well ...

Whew, that was a whiney blog post! I think I'm going to need to do more regular body work if I keep training this hard. I got a massage from Mr. Fort and it was exceedingly painful.

Ah, the cool water at Pitt was such a relief after 2 days of hot water. Despite skipping the 100s at the end of the rounds, I felt like I got in plenty of sprint work. Did a :22 backstroke kick with fins on the last round. I'm feeling a bit beat up after 3 days in a row of race pace work. Will just go on the treadmill today and maybe do some stretching.

I wasn't sure what to do with the three rounds of 8 x 50 IM ... I didn't want to just cruise all of them but the interval was kinda tough for stroke work. I used fins and did # 1, 3 and 6 @ 100 pace each round and cruised the others. After the four fast 25s, I was dead and in no shape to do the fast 100s assigned. Drop dead sprinters need rest! Anyway, between the 9 x 50 @ 100 pace and the 12 x 25 fast, I felt like I got a plenty hard workout.

I am heading to Canada today for a wedding, so will be out of the water for a few days.

This was basically the same workout that I did at Sewy last Friday. The 3rd round, I did the 50s at 100 pace (getting tired). But I did rip off a :23 in one of my fly with fins 50 AFAP efforts. And for the 25 fast kicks, I did shooters (no fins) and went 12 highs. I was happy with those times.

It all seems so easy when you're at the gym. This am I woke up with a really sore upper back/shoulders from the explosive slamming ...

Sunday: Swim/SCY/Solo @ BP

Warm up:

600 various
100 scull
100 caterpillar fly drill
4 x 25 shooters
50 EZ

Main sets:

6 x 30 burst off the blocks to 15m, cruise back
100 EZ

8 x (25 AFAP + 75 EZ) @ 3-3:30
100 EZ

16 x 50 @ 1:00
odds = free w/Lochte turn
evens = EZ kick
100 EZ

Total: 3100

I was sore today but managed to get in some starts and drop dead sprints. My times were solid. I still feel like my turnover could use some improvement. But I've only been back in the pool two months and just re-started my AFAP sprinting. NEVERTHELESS, wait for it, I signed up for a meet! Maybe a bit too much chutzpah, but hey it's masters. So I will take my crappy arms and give it a whirl with expectations in check and seed times adjusted accordingly. Just some 50s to start ... I feel like I have a free pass for life with respect to dying at the end of races now. Lil Fort gave me an A+ for post adversity bravery.

6 rounds (2 fly, 2 back, 2 free)
4 x 25: shooter, 12.5 SDK, build, sprint
-- I ended up doing these 12.5 SDK, 12.5 SDL, all EZ, AFAP
-- I can't do shooters after an all out effort. Not sure anyone could -- there was a lot of griping about this.

16 x 25, odds = EZ, evens = sprint @ :45
-- My arms were really tired, so I did the sprints backstroke kick with fins
-- I was able to hold 10-11s, which is pretty good for me on the 1:30 instead of the usual 3:00 that I do all out efforts on
150 EZ

Total: 3500

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I've gotten in some good training lately. I've managed to do some AFAP 50s, which I had been avoiding. Last night was a ton of sprinting and I was beat after. Having Melissa in the next lane to race on the fast stuff really pushed me.

There was no Pitt practice bc of a meet, so I headed to Sewy. But it was hot, late (7:30 pm start) and there was a hard lactate production set assigned (ew!). So I felt like I phoned this one in ... Just did some 100 pace work here and there and tried hard on the 25s.

Whew, I could feel the drylands at practice the next day ... I can't say the gym is inspiring me too much these days, hence the sparse attendance. I may just do core work and plyos this year.

As usual, by the time we got to the sprints the last 20 minutes of practice, I was a bit blasted from all the aerobic work. And there wasn't enough recovery time/swimming do go AFAP. I did 3 x 50 breast @ 100 pace (29s) and one 100 back kick where I tried some (:59). I was afterward.

Whew, I could feel the drylands at practice the next day ... I can't say the gym is inspiring me too much these days, hence the sparse attendance. I may just do core work and plyos this year.

As usual, by the time we got to the sprints the last 20 minutes of practice, I was a bit blasted from all the aerobic work. And there wasn't enough recovery time/swimming do go AFAP. I did 3 x 50 breast @ 100 pace (29s) and one 100 back kick where I tried some (:59). I was afterward.

Well, I made another attempt at AFAP 25s. My times were about the same as pre-surgery with the exception of fly being a tick slower. Fly feels the hardest right now. Between last Friday's workout, these 25s and doing some starts, I almost feel like a real swimmer again! Today, I just cruised. I was tired from Sunday's effort and I'm told garbage yards promotes vascularization.

I did 7 miles on the treadmill during the day. Was worried I'd be tired at practice, but the legs held up.

Warm up:

500 various
50 scull

4 x 200 with some weird breathing pattern
-- I alternated free and kick
-- a 200 seemed really long on the arms

6 x 50, work SDK @ 1:00
50 EZ

Main sets:

4 rounds:
4 x 25 @ :45, extra :30
-- there was a pattern, but I did them all Im order @ 100 pace
50 EZ

4 rounds:

8 x 25 sprint @ :50
100 EZ
-- I did them with fins: back (12s), fly (12s), breast (13s), and back kick (11s) @ 100 pace
-- I was surprised I could make 8 x 25 fly, but the interval was generous
-- I was also pretty shocked that I could hold 11s on the back kick after all that 100 pace work

1 x 50 @ 100 pace
1 x 50 EZ
1 x 50 fast
1 x 150 EZ

-- No, I was beat so just cruised 300 more all EZ

Total: 3800

Saturday:

10 mile hike in Frick park

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I was really beat after Friday's practice, even though it was mostly 25s. When you do 48 of them @ 100 pace, that's tiring. I'm going to head to BP later today.

I had to leave practice early to drive to Baltimore, so arrived early and did this before the official workout started:

Warm up:

500 various
100 scull
10 x 25 shooters @ :40
50 EZ

while they were doing 400 various, I did:
5 x 50 burst + cruise
50 EZ

Main sets:

16 x 25 @ :40
-- they were doing some pattern, but I did them 100 pace IM order with an easy one in the middle
-- my times seemed pretty fast, probably because we got to swim in the deep end bc the club kids weren't there

The first round was a disaster for me, I cramped on a couple efforts and only got out one fast 50. The second round, backstroke, was cramp free. I only did 3 of them but went 27, 27, 26. A best average set is a bit much for me after only 5 weeks of swimming ...

200 EZ

Total: 2800

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I left to drive to Baltimore. The news wasn't quite as terrible as I feared. My left subclavian vein did re-close to some degree (which I could tell) after the venoplasty. (Apparently, there is a recoil effect.) But Dr. Lum estimates that it is 50% open. It was 70% closed before. The axillary vein on the right side is a dead loss, completely occluded. But the subclavian has opened a tiny bit more and I have a good collateral. The fact that I have a good collateral means that the problem has been brewing for years. I have to be on blood thinners until Thanksgiving (6 months post surgery). I will be happy to get off them! And swimming should not cause any further damage because the ribs, scalenes and pec minors are gone, decompressing the area and leaving more room for collaterals.

Well, that was a beat down of a sprint conditioning workout ... at least for me! That middle set of 4 rounds of fast kicking really zapped me. But I think 35s are decent times for a 50 kick right now. I swam the 8 x 25 set right after pretty well, but then I was dead the rest of the workout and muddled through. Still, on the whole, my 100 pace times were the fastest they've been since I got back in the pool. Coach Bill said he thinks I'm improving every workout.

The all out 25s swim that I did on Sunday did not seem to agree. So I hit the treadmill for a couple days. And I just did 100 pace stuff last night. But I did a fair amount of it, so was pretty bushed afterward. We an an Olympic semi-finalist from 2016 swimming with us last night in the fast lane. She had a beautiful backstroke.